Andrew Wang, MD, assistant professor of radiation oncology, has been awarded a $100,000 one-year grant from the National Academies Keck Futures Initiative (NAKFI), a program of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine with support from the W.M. Keck Foundation. Wang is a member of UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.

As more is understood about cancer at the cellular level, an increasing number of molecular markers must be assessed for accurate tumor classification and treatment planning. Wang, an invited participant to the program’s 2010 meeting, will engineer nanoparticles that can target and identify multiple disease markers simultaneously. This detailed biologic information can then be used to improve tumor staging and to evaluate how well a therapy is working. Wang’s co-principal investigator is Andrew Tsourkas, PhD, at the University of Pennsylvania.